


Shelter

by polkadottedmars



Category: Nancy Drew - Carolyn Keene
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-22
Updated: 2015-07-22
Packaged: 2018-04-10 14:48:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4396037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/polkadottedmars/pseuds/polkadottedmars
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ned is the last person Nancy expected to see at the animal shelter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shelter

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ndnickerson](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ndnickerson/gifts).



> Prompt adapted from: http://nedxnancy.tumblr.com/post/120735975478/otpprompts-imagine-person-a-works-at-a-pet

“She’s a rowdy one, huh?”

Ned chuckled. “That’s putting it lightly,” he joked as he handed the puppy off to his supervisor Caleb.

“Hey, you haven’t mentioned Sarah lately. What happened?” the older man asked.

Picking up a stack of paperwork from the counter, Ned shrugged. “Bad timing. She left right before everything went down at work.” He flipped through the papers quickly, changing the subject. “Where’s the paperwork on the Lab?” he asked, referencing a rescue dog that had been brought in that morning.

The bell above the front door rang, cutting off Caleb before he could answer. He groaned as the beagle puppy grew more excited at the noise and tried to escape his arms. “Whose idea was that bell again?”

Ned grinned. “Yours.” Leaning out the doorway to the front slightly, he called out, “Be out in a minute.” He motioned to the puppy Caleb was struggling to get into her cage. “Want me to take her off your hands?”

“Nah, it’s your turn out front, Nickerson.”

Ned made his way to the front counter, greeting the family waiting for him.

A redheaded woman was bent down with her back to him, tying the laces of her son’s shoes with one hand, her other hand firmly holding a toddler on her hip. Ned estimated the dark-haired boy was around nine before casting an eye at his older sister. Her hands folded and lips turned down, she could have been the poster child for a moody pre-teen who wanted to be anywhere else. He had run into quite a few during his time at the animal shelter and always made it his mission to place as many animals into the pre-teens’ hands as it took to change their attitudes.

“We want a dog!” the boy exclaimed, running up to Ned as soon as his mother had finished her task.

“Let’s see what we could do then,” Ned told him before looking over at his mother as she got up and turned to face him. “Sarah?” he asked, doing a double-take at the image of the woman who had haunted his dreams every night for two weeks. It had been just over a month since he had seen her last.

She paled. “Ned...hi.” Biting her lip, she cast a glance over the two older children before looking back at him.

“It’s so good to see you again,” Ned said warmly. “How have you been?”

The insurance company Ned worked at had hired Sarah from a temp agency to replace his co-worker’s secretary. He had noticed her immediately, but hadn’t offered her more than a smile and a welcome, knowing anything else would have been inappropriate. He couldn’t help himself from finding ways to run into her, though. Instead of eating lunch at his desk like he usually did, he started going to the staff lounge, and when he was lucky Sarah was there at the same time.

From their conversations Ned had learned that not only was Sarah beautiful, but she was smart and funny too. She had asked a lot of questions about the company and seemed a lot more dedicated than the last temp the agency had supplied, which Ned appreciated. He had been hoping to ask her out once she was finished at the company, but one morning without warning she was gone.

The next day a couple of the higher-ups had been arrested for embezzlement, and amidst the chaos that had resulted, he still hadn’t forgotten about the temp with the startling blue eyes and inquisitive nature.

“Sarah?”

Ned looked over at Sarah’s daughter, her face muddled with confusion. Sarah hadn’t mentioned having any children, so to say he was surprised she had three would be an understatement. But as he looked at her, he could tell she was a natural from the way she kept all three children close to her.

He had guessed she was a couple years younger than him, but after some quick math in his head, he knew he had to be off. At twenty-six, it was a stretch for him to be old enough to have a pre-teen daughter, so Sarah had to be older than him. He could have sworn Sarah had alluded to graduating within the past few years during one of their conversations, but that didn’t really mean much. She could have started late or taken longer to finish.

“Ned?”

Sarah’s soft voice startled him from his attempts to figure the puzzle of her out. “Sorry, what?”

“I asked if there’s any way someone can show them around while we talk.”

Sarah had leaned in to ask him, and it took all of Ned’s control to nod and call for Caleb. “Can you take these three to start looking at some dogs?” he asked when Caleb appeared. “Sarah and I need to talk for a minute,” he said, answering Caleb’s unasked question.

“ _Sarah_?” the girl asked again.

Instead of answering her, Sarah gently deposited the toddler into the girl’s arms. “Watch your sister and brother for me, okay?” Turning to Caleb, she added, “I don’t know how Lexie is around dogs yet, so don’t take any of them out of their cages until I’m there.” She waited until Caleb and the children departed down the hallway before she turned back to Ned.

“Are you okay?” Ned asked, sensing the tension running through her.

“I can’t believe this hasn’t happened to me yet,” she muttered under her breath. “You’re supposed to be in Chicago. What are you even doing here in an animal shelter in Mapleton?” Shaking her head, she didn’t wait for him to answer. “Please don’t hate me,” she said quietly, making eye contact. “But I lied. It’s my job, so I don’t even know why I feel guilty but for some reason, with you…I do,” she rambled.

“Sarah,” he cut her off.

“Nancy. My name is Nancy. Your boss hired me from a detective agency, not a temp agency. She knew the accounts were off but didn’t know who was stealing from the company, so I was supposed to—"

“—Whoa, slow down,” Ned cut her off again, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Now all of your rapid-fire questions during lunch make sense,” he joked.

“You’re not mad?” Nancy asked, her brows knitting. “You’re working here, which means I probably got you fired somehow. You were the first one I told her was clear,” she vowed.

“Volunteering,” he corrected. “And I wasn’t fired. Far from it, actually. Some positions opened up—thanks to you, I guess—and I got a promotion. I got transferred back to the Mapleton office.”

Nancy beamed, congratulating him. “You deserve it. You were the hardest-working one there.”

Ned shook his head, chuckling. “Maybe when it came to trying to get your attention.”

Blushing, Nancy tilted her head towards the hallway. “Maybe we should catch up with them now that we’ve cleared the air.”

“I guess…” he trailed off. “So you never mentioned kids. I guess that’s part of the job, though, huh? Fake name, fake identity.”

“Oh,” Nancy said, her head shaking. “They’re not mine. I helped their mother get out of some trouble a couple of years ago.”

“And now you baby-sit on the weekends?” Ned questioned. “Secretary by day, international spy at night, and a baby-sitter on the weekend. Is there anything you don’t do?”

Laughing, Nancy bumped into him lightly. “International spy is a bit of an exaggeration.” Sobering she added, “And I wish I was just baby-sitting. Kelly died last month. The kids spent a week in foster care before I was allowed to take them.”

“Wow,” Ned said, impressed. “You must have been close to Kelly to take in her kids.”

“Not really,” Nancy answered with a shake of her head. “Kelly was afraid something would happen to her. Lexie’s father…” she trailed off. “He was arrested for Kelly’s murder, so that should tell you something. Kelly lived in fear of him doing something, and she has virtually not family left, so she knew the kids would probably go into foster care and get separated. She asked me to track down an aunt of hers in case anything happened to her.”

“Even if you weren’t close, she had to have trusted you a lot to leave her kids with you in the meantime,” Ned remarked.

“Oh,” Nancy bowed her head slightly, blushing. “She didn’t. But I couldn’t stand the idea of them all being separated while I was looking. They were in three different homes and when I visited them, they all looked so miserable. It was bad enough that they had lost their mother.” With a shrug, she brushed off his approval of her actions. “Anyone would have done it. I’m just lucky that my dad was able to use his connections and hurry up the process of getting them.”

“I’m not so sure about that. I think you’re one of a kind, Nancy.” Sensing her discomfort, he motioned for her to follow him down the hallway. “So what kind of dog are you looking for today?”

“Something intimidating,” Nancy said. “With the kids, I can’t keep my gun out like I normally would. I guess I’m just looking for a little extra protection. And it has to be good with the kids.”

“How close are you to finding the aunt?” Ned asked.

“She’s dead, unfortunately,” Nancy answered. “Kelly had lost track of her about a decade ago. The aunt died three years ago, but she has a couple children. I’ve reached out to them. I’m hoping at least one will want to take the kids.”

“And if neither does?”

Nancy bit her lip. “I’m hardly mother material,” she said with a sigh.

“Not from what I can see,” Ned told her.

She studied him closely, and realizing he was being honest, she blushed. “Thanks. I appreciate that.”

Knowing it would only embarrass her, he dropped the subject as he opened a door for her, getting the attention of the occupants.

“ _Nancy_ , you’re back!”

Laughing, Ned leaned in closer to Nancy and whispered in her ear. “I’d be careful with that one. She could blow one of your covers.”

Walking up to the small group, Nancy took the toddler out of the older girls hands, and turned to Ned. “This is Lexie. And Ava and Ethan.”

He greeted them warmly before telling Caleb he would take over. “ _Nancy_ told me so much about you,” he couldn’t help telling the kids.

“But not about her, I guess,” Ava muttered under her breath.

Nancy shot him an apologetic look, but he shrugged it off, and headed to one of the cages in the back of the room. “Did Caleb introduce you guys to Tucker yet?”

Ethan hurried to catch up to Ned. “Can I pet him?”

“Sure thing,” Ned answered with a chuckle. Reaching into his pants pocket, he pulled out a treat and handed it to Ethan. “You can even feed him that.”

The little boy’s eyes widened. “Did you hear that?” he asked, turning around to ask Nancy.

“Just be careful,” Nancy pleaded, afraid Ethan’s excitement would scare the dog.

“Tucker’s our sweetest dog,” Ned promised as he opened the cage and a fawn boxer padded out. “He’s just over a year old and we’ve had him about three weeks.”

Tucker walked over to Nancy, and she bent down to scratch behind one of his ears. She was rewarded with a quick kiss on the nose.

“He’s definitely cute,” she said with a laugh.

“Can I give him the treat now?” Ethan pleaded.

“One minute. Let’s take him outside so you guys can play with him.” He tapped his leg, getting the dog’s attention. “Want to hold that door open for us?” he asked Ethan.

Nancy was the last one to walk outside, her hand automatically reaching up to shield her eyes from the sun.

“There’s a bench over there in the shade,” Ned said, tilting his head towards one edge of the tall fence. “We can sit there while the kids play.”

As Nancy settled herself on the bench, she watched as Ned demonstrated some hand signals to get Tucker to sit, shake, and roll over. He handed both Ethan and Ava, who seemed to have warmed up, a couple more treats before making his way to Nancy and Lexie.

“How old is she?”

“Fourteen months,” Nancy answered, gently bouncing the babbling toddler on her knee.

“Tuck is great with kids and babies. His family had four kids.”

“Why did they bring him here?”

“It wasn’t his fault,” he assured her. “One of the kids...” he trailed off. “Well he treated poor Tuck pretty poorly. The parents couldn’t get him to stop and they were afraid Tuck would hit his limit and snap one day.”

“So they just got rid of him?” Nancy asked appalled.

Chuckling, Ned nodded. “Easier than getting rid of the brat,” he joked. “They did try and find him a home with their friends first.” Winking he added, “The kid, I mean.”

Nancy watched as Ethan threw a treat in the air for Tucker to catch. “Maybe he wouldn’t be the best dog for the kids, though.”

“Nah,” Ned brushed off her concerns. “My cousin volunteers here too, and he brings his kids to help sometimes. Tucker adores them.” He laughed as Ethan waved at them excitedly. “Boxers by nature are really good with kids. And they’re protective. If Tucker senses a threat, he’ll protect you and the kids.”

“I can’t believe he hasn’t been adopted then,” Nancy remarked, watching as the dog took turns chasing Ethan and Ava.

“That’s kind of my fault,” Ned said, wincing. “Caleb says I spoil Tucker too much. He usually doesn’t warm up to anyone else and just sticks by my side. That doesn’t really make the best impression.”

“Then why haven’t you adopted him?”

“Timing,” Ned answered with a shrug. “I haven’t officially moved back to Mapleton yet. I started looking at apartments, but then I thought maybe it was time for a house.”

“Your dad’s in real estate, right?” Nancy asked, remembering one of their lunchtime conversations.

“Yeah, he’s keeping an eye out right now for what I want. He hasn’t had luck so far.”

“He should try River Heights,” Nancy suggested. “I’ve seen some for sale signs on some pretty nice houses.”

“River Heights…” Ned trailed off. “You’re the teen detective who was always in the paper!”

Blushing, Nancy nodded. “It’s been awhile since I was recognized.”

“My mom loves mysteries,” Ned started to explain. “Books, shows, movies—she always tries to piece together the clues to solve the case. We would always keep an eye out for your name in the paper. Mom found it exciting to have a real-life young detective living in the town over. She said you were like something out of a book.”

Noticing her embarrassment, he stood up and reached for her hand. “How about we see how Lexie and Tucker get along?”

An hour later, Nancy signed the last of the paperwork to add Tucker to her little make-shift family. Ned had shown her and the children around, but none of the other dogs had compared to Tucker.

“You’re all set,” Ned said, accepting the papers from her. Grabbing one of the shelter’s business cards, he quickly scrawled on the back of it before handing it to Nancy. “Listen, I know your first priority is the kids and finding their family, but when you’re ready, I’d really love to take you out on a date.”

Nancy bit her lip and glanced over her shoulder to where all three kids were petting Tucker. “It might take awhile,” she warned.

Shrugging, Ned tapped the card with his pen. “I can wait. In the meantime, feel free to call me if you need help with Tucker or insurance or anything.”

“You and Tucker do have a special bond,” Nancy reasoned with a grin. “It’d be wrong to cut you both off cold turkey. Maybe you could come over next weekend to help him adjust?”

"Anything to help Tucker," Ned said, his smile widening. 

“C’mon, Nancy,” Ethan said, appearing at Nancy’s side. He tugged her hand impatiently. “Let’s go buy Tucker toys.”

“Okay, Okay,” she relented, allowing Ethan to pull her towards the exit. “Bye, Ned.”

“Bye, _Sarah_ ,” Ned responded with a wink. He watched until the door closed behind her.

_buzz_

Ned picked up his phone from the counter and opened the incoming text from an unknown number. "Tucker misses you already," he read aloud. Grinning, he tapped out his response.

_next weekend can't come fast enough_


End file.
